Misreading the many headlines

Everywhere you turn there is one spokesperson or another doing their best to calm the fears of financial advisers with explanations of the new regime and helpful tips on how to get around the problems of chargeable lifetime transfer taxation. These efforts are laudable, but there is a risk that advisers are giving the false impression we are in a similar position to that which existed pre-Budget. Before the Budget, there was a view in some quarters that advisers were being encouraged by providers to promote the benefits of discounted gift trusts (DGTs) above other forms of IHT planning. Th...